Reorganized Government
General Assembly of Virginia

July 15, 1861

The
House of Delegates met at the usual hour.

Prayer
by Rev. S. R. Brockunier.

A
communication from the Senate announced that the Senate had receded
from their amendment to the House bill No. 3, to authorize the
issue of bank notes of less denomination than five dollars. Also,
that the Senate had passed Senate bill No. 1; entitled an act
staying the collection of certain debts until the 1st day of
January, 1863; and Senate bill No. 2, entitled an act to amend and
re-enact the first section of chapter 150 of the
Code.

The
bill No. 1 was read a first and second time.

FONTAIN
SMITH offered a substitute, which was ordered to be laid on the
table and printed.

Bill
No. 2 was read and referred to the Committee on Courts of
Justice.

A
message from the Senate reported that that body concurs with the
House in their resolution to proceed on Tuesday next to the
election of Brigadier General.

Mr.
HOOTON from the Committee on Privileges and Elections, reported
back the report committed to them, which was read and laid on the
table.

A
message from the Senate announced the passage of House bill No. 8,
without amendment.

Mr.
WILSON offered the following as a substitute for the resolution
offered by him at an early stage of the session, authorizing the
Treasurer to demand certain amounts of money from the Federal
Government.

Resolved, by the General Assembly of Virginia,
That the Treasurer of this Commonwealth, or such other person as
the Governor may appoint, by letter of authority under the lesser
seal of the Commonwealth, be authorized and directed, to demand and
receive at the Treasury of the United States, so much of the net
proceeds of the sales of the Public Lands as shall have accrued and
become payable to this Commonwealth, under the terms and provisions
of the act of the Congress of the United States entitled, "an act
to appropriate the proceeds of the sales of the Public Lands and to
grant pre- emption rights;" approved 4th day of September,
1841.

The
resolution was laid on the table and ordered to be printed, and
made the order of the day for to- morrow at ten
o'clock.

Mr.
SMITH presented the credentials of Greenbury Slack, from the county
of Kanawha, which were referred to the appropriate
Committee.

Bills
on their first reading were taken up.

House
bill No. 10, to regulate (by diminishing) the salaries of the
Cashier and other officers of the branch of the Exchange Bank of
Virginia, at Weston, was taken up and read a second
time.

Mr.
ARNOLD advocated the passage of the bill.

Messrs.
Hooton, West and Logan opposed it.

Mr.
HOOTON moved to indefinitely postpone.

Lost.

The
Chair said the question was only on the engrossment.

The
question was taken and the bill ordered to its
engrossment.

Engrossed bills were taken up.

The
House bill altering the compensation of public printer and printer
to the Senate was read a third time and passed.

The
Clerk read a despatch from Grafton, announcing that Gen. Garnett
had been killed the day before, (Sunday,) in regular
battle.

Mr.
PORTER was appointed to notify the Senate of the passage of the
bill.

Mr.
LOGAN presented a memorial from the School Commissioners of the
City of Wheeling, asking for a division of the city into four,
instead of six districts.

In the Senate, Mr. Stewart reported a bill from the Committee on
Courts of Justice and General Laws, re-arranging the 18th, 19th,
20th and 21st Judicial Circuits in the 9th and 10th Judicial
Districts.

House bill No. 8, amending 33d section of chapter 44 of the
code, was passed.

House bill No. 6, prescribing the duties and fixing the
compensation of the clerks of the Senate and House, was read a
second time and ordered to its third reading; also, House bill No.
7, abolishing the present Board of Public Works.

House bill No. 3, authorizing the issue of small notes, was
passed, with an amendment providing that the circulation of them
shall not exceed ten per cent on the capital of the banks issuing
them, and that the aggregate circulation allowed by law shall not
be exceeded.